UK Landlord Forum / Life

We have a tenant in a one bed ground floor flat. He has complained about (light) mould on one wall. We suspect he is not heating the flat. This suspicion is based on readings we've taken from the gas meter which is on an external wall and is accessible from outside the flat.

Over 918 days : 1126 m3 gas or 1.22 m3 per day average.
Over 475 days  : 632 m3 gas or 1.33 m3 per day average.

(918 days since he moved in, 475 days from the time we last took a meter reading).

Gas is used for heating, hot water and showering.

The flat is rented out to someone in a professional job and he has recently moved in a partner who also works.

We are concerned on how to approach this. If we mention meter readings the tenant might suggest we are 'spying on them!

We have the idea of installing a 2nd radiator on the cold wall but there's no point if the tenant isn't going to switch on the heating!

Any suggestions on how we might tackle this ?

How long has he lived there?  Did the problem only arise after the partner moved in?  Ventillation matters too, so I am wondering if the new addition is someone averse to fresh air. Presumably you have given him some downloaded information from your local council etc.  and checked that he has used bleach or anti- mould spray on the affected areas. 

Quote from: heavykarma on May 17, 2025, 01:27:59 PMHow long has he lived there?  Did the problem only arise after the partner moved in?  Ventillation matters too, so I am wondering if the new addition is someone averse to fresh air. Presumably you have given him some downloaded information from your local council etc.  and checked that he has used bleach or anti- mould spray on the affected areas. 

The tenant moved in 2.5 years ago. The tenant's partner moved in at some point but we were not notified as to when (the tenancy agreement allows for a partner to live at the property with the tenant.).

The tenant has been using a bleach based solution to tackle surface mould but is complaining that the surface mould keeps coming back.

Looking at the energy usage for the flat, I suspect that it is rarely heated and I wish to tackle the tenant about a perceived lack of heating (based on the gas meter readings) but am unsure if they would complain about an invasion of privacy or similar?

I would say that in order to decide what course of action to take you need to know about the heating, and that you will check this yourself at the same time as checking the outside wall and guttering for signs of damage or leaks.If you called in a contractor they would want to know about the heating and ventilation in order to report back to you.